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Drivers across Spain are finally getting a bit of breathing space at the pumps after diesel prices dropped below €1.70 a litre for the first time since March.

 

According to the latest figures from the European Union’s Oil Bulletin, the average price of diesel has now fallen to €1.685 per litre following another weekly drop of almost 2%. It’s the second week in a row diesel prices have fallen and continues a steady downward trend seen over recent weeks.

 

The drop means diesel is now sitting well below the levels recorded before the government stepped in earlier this year with emergency tax measures aimed at easing pressure on motorists after fuel prices surged during the conflict involving Iran and growing tensions around the Strait of Hormuz.

 

Petrol prices haven’t followed quite the same pattern though. The average cost of unleaded fuel rose slightly again this week to €1.547 per litre, marking a third consecutive increase, although the rises have remained fairly modest compared with diesel earlier in the year.

 

Back in March, the Spanish government approved a package of temporary measures designed to stop fuel prices spiralling completely out of control. These included reducing VAT on fuel to 10%, cutting hydrocarbon taxes to the lowest level allowed under EU rules and introducing support measures for transport workers and the agricultural sector.

 

At the time, drivers had already endured around ten straight weeks of rising prices as oil markets reacted to instability in the Middle East.

 

The latest falls are now giving motorists some welcome relief, even if filling up still costs considerably more than it did a year ago.

 

For diesel vehicles, filling an average 55-litre tank currently costs around €92.67, which is still roughly €17 more expensive than this time last year. Petrol drivers are paying around €85 to fill a similar-sized tank, about €5 more than a year ago.

 

Even so, current fuel prices remain well below the record levels reached during the summer of 2022, when petrol climbed above €2.14 a litre and diesel hit €2.10.

 

Fuel prices in Spain continue to be influenced by several factors including global oil prices, taxes, transport costs and wholesale market conditions, with changes in crude oil prices often taking time to fully feed through to petrol stations.

 

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